WESTERN INFORMATION OFFICE: San Francisco, Calif.Technical information: (415) 625-2270 BLSinfoSF@bls.gov www.bls.gov/regions/westMedia contact: (415) 625-2270

Consumer Price Index, Los Angeles area — December 2015Area prices were down 0.1 percent over the past month, up 2.0 percent from a year ago

Prices in the Los Angeles area, as measured by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), inched down 0.1 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table A.) Regional Commissioner Richard J. Holden noted that the December decrease was influenced by lower prices for food at home and apparel. (Data in this report are not seasonally adjusted. Accordingly, month-to-month changes may reflect seasonal influences.)

Over the last 12 months, the CPI-U advanced 2.0 percent. (See chart 1 and table A.) Energy prices declined 3.0 percent, largely the result of a decrease in the price of electricity. The index for all items less food and energy increased 2.8 percent over the year. (See table 1.)

FoodFood prices decreased 0.8 percent for the month of December. (See table 1.) Prices for food at home declined 1.6 percent, yet prices for food away from home inched up 0.2 percent for the same period.

Over the year, food prices rose 0.5 percent. Prices for food away from home increased 2.8 percent since a year ago, but prices for food at home decreased 1.1 percent.

For Release: Wednesday, January 20, 2016 16-117-SAN

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EnergyThe energy index decreased 0.4 percent over the month. The decrease was mainly due to lower prices for electricity (-1.6 percent). Prices for gasoline decreased 0.7 percent, but prices for natural gas service advanced 4.4 percent for the same period.

Energy prices declined 3.0 percent over the year, largely due to lower prices for electricity (-6.0 percent). Prices paid for natural gas service decreased 7.2 percent and prices for gasoline decreased 0.4 percent, during the past year.

All items less food and energyThe index for all items less food and energy was unchanged in December. Higher prices for household furnishings and operations (1.1 percent) and shelter (0.4 percent) were partially offset by lower prices for apparel (-3.7 percent) and other goods and services (-0.4 percent).

Over the year, the index for all items less food and energy increased 2.8 percent. Components contributing to the increase included medical care (4.4 percent) and recreation (4.3 percent). Partly offsetting the increases was a price decline in apparel (-0.3 percent).

The January 2016 Consumer Price Index for the Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County is scheduled to be released on February 19, 2016.

Technical Note

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure of the average change in prices over time in a fixed market basket of goods and services. The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes CPIs for two population groups: (1) a CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) which covers approximately 89 percent of the total population and (2) a CPI for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) which covers 28 percent of the total population. The CPI-U includes, in addition to wage earners and clerical workers, groups such as professional, managerial, and technical workers, the self-employed, short-term workers, the unemployed, and retirees and others not in the labor force.

Table A. Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County CPI-U monthly and annual percent changes (not seasonally adjusted)

Month2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Monthly Annual Monthly Annual Monthly Annual Monthly Annual Monthly Annual Monthly AnnualJanuary....................................  0.4  1.8  0.9  1.8  0.8  2.1  0.8  2.0  0.5  0.8  -0.3  -0.1February ..................................  0.0  1.4  0.5  2.3  0.5  2.1  0.7  2.2  0.5  0.5  0.7  0.1March ......................................  0.4  1.9  1.1  3.0  1.0  2.0  0.1  1.3  0.6  1.0  1.0  0.5April .........................................  0.2  1.9  0.5  3.3  0.0  1.5  -0.4  0.9  0.0  1.4  -0.1  0.5May..........................................  0.2  1.8  0.0  3.1  0.1  1.6  0.1  1.0  0.4  1.7  1.0  1.1June.........................................  -0.2  0.9  -0.4  2.9  -0.4  1.6  -0.1  1.4  0.1  1.8  -0.3  0.8July ..........................................  0.1  0.9  -0.4  2.4  -0.1  1.9  -0.1  1.3  0.1  2.0  0.7  1.4August .....................................  0.2  0.8  0.2  2.4  0.6  2.3  0.1  0.8  -0.1  1.8  -0.3  1.1September...............................  -0.1  0.4  0.5  3.1  0.4  2.2  0.2  0.6  0.0  1.7  -0.4  0.7October....................................  0.3  0.7  0.0  2.8  0.8  3.0  0.1  -0.1  -0.1  1.4  0.2  1.0November................................  -0.4  0.7  -0.1  3.0  -1.0  2.1  -0.5  0.4  -0.7  1.3  0.0  1.6December................................  0.3  1.3  -0.5  2.2  -0.7  1.9  0.0  1.1  -0.5  0.7  -0.1  2.0

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The CPI is based on prices of food, clothing, shelter, and fuels, transportation fares, charges for doctors' and dentists' services, drugs, and the other goods and services that people buy for day-to-day living. Each month, prices are collected in 87 urban areas across the country from about 6,000 housing units and approximately 24,000 retail establishments--department stores, supermarkets, hospitals, filling stations, and other types of stores and service establishments. All taxes directly associated with the purchase and use of items are included in the index.

The index measures price changes from a designated reference date (1982-84) that equals 100.0. An increase of 16.5 percent, for example, is shown as 116.5. This change can also be expressed in dollars as follows: the price of a base period "market basket" of goods and services in the CPI has risen from $10 in 1982-84 to $11.65. For further details see the CPI home page on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cpi and the BLS Handbook of Methods, Chapter 17, The Consumer Price Index, available on the Internet at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/homch17_a.htm.

In calculating the index, price changes for the various items in each location are averaged together with weights that represent their importance in the spending of the appropriate population group. Local data are then combined to obtain a U.S. city average. Because the sample size of a local area is smaller, the local area index is subject to substantially more sampling and other measurement error than the national index. In addition, local indexes are not adjusted for seasonal influences. As a result, local area indexes show greater volatility than the national index, although their long-term trends are quite similar. NOTE: Area indexes do not measure differences in the level of prices between cities; they only measure the average change in prices for each area since the base period.

The Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA. metropolitan area covered in this release is comprised of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura Counties in the State of California.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

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Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted)

Item and Group

 

Indexes  Percent change from-

Oct.2015

Nov.2015

Dec.2015

Dec.2014

Oct.2015

Nov.2015

Expenditure category

All items...........................................................   245.812   245.711   245.357   2.0   -0.2   -0.1All items (1967=100) .......................................   726.237   725.941   724.893   -   -   -

Food and beverages ....................................   251.272   251.700   249.752   0.6   -0.6   -0.8Food .........................................................   251.648   251.968   249.838   0.5   -0.7   -0.8

Food at home .......................................   260.999   260.238   256.077   -1.1   -1.9   -1.6Food away from home..........................   236.232   237.921   238.404   2.8   0.9   0.2

Alcoholic beverages .................................   231.621   233.316   233.690   1.3   0.9   0.2Housing ........................................................   269.317   269.198   270.386   2.8   0.4   0.4

Shelter ......................................................   305.625   306.503   307.810   3.9   0.7   0.4Rent of primary residence (1) ................   320.343   321.865   323.270   4.2   0.9   0.4Owners' equiv. rent of residences (1) (2).   317.784   318.506   320.073   3.7   0.7   0.5

Owners' equiv. rent of primary residence (1) (2) ..................................   317.756   318.482   320.054   3.7   0.7   0.5

Fuels and utilities......................................   297.508   291.090   290.880   -4.0   -2.2   -0.1Household energy ................................   265.167   256.173   256.045   -6.3   -3.4   0.0

Energy services (1).............................   264.044   254.962   254.881   -6.3   -3.5   0.0Electricity (1)...................................   300.925   300.925   296.080   -6.0   -1.6   -1.6Utility (piped) gas service (1) ..........   222.585   196.124   204.688   -7.2   -8.0   4.4

Household furnishings and operations .....   115.363   114.359   115.587   0.4   0.2   1.1Apparel .........................................................   113.500   110.747   106.662   -0.3   -6.0   -3.7Transportation ..............................................   194.011   192.619   191.681   0.9   -1.2   -0.5

Private transportation ...............................   188.820   186.873   186.458   1.0   -1.3   -0.2Motor fuel .............................................   228.651   219.830   218.367   -0.5   -4.5   -0.7

Gasoline (all types)............................   223.802   215.129   213.709   -0.4   -4.5   -0.7Gasoline, unleaded regular (3) .......   224.227   215.431   214.090   -0.3   -4.5   -0.6Gasoline, unleaded midgrade (3)(4) ...................................................   214.672   206.756   204.578   -1.0   -4.7   -1.1

Gasoline, unleaded premium (3) ....   213.374   205.609   204.270   -0.1   -4.3   -0.7Medical care .................................................   433.038   443.047   443.162   4.4   2.3   0.0Recreation (5)................................................   106.169   106.536   106.622   4.3   0.4   0.1Education and communication (5) .................   147.283   147.079   146.643   0.4   -0.4   -0.3Other goods and services ............................   391.837   391.758   390.022   2.0   -0.5   -0.4

Commodity and service group

All items...........................................................   245.812   245.711   245.357   2.0   -0.2   -0.1Commodities ................................................   175.708   174.412   173.172   0.0   -1.4   -0.7

Commodities less food & beverages........   136.021   134.043   133.158   -0.4   -2.1   -0.7Nondurables less food & beverages ....   176.352   173.450   171.621   -0.4   -2.7   -1.1Durables ...............................................   96.558   95.469   95.479   -0.5   -1.1   0.0

Services........................................................   307.972   309.048   309.571   3.2   0.5   0.2

Special aggregate indexes

All items less medical care ..............................   237.547   237.112   236.745   1.9   -0.3   -0.2All items less shelter........................................   219.771   219.247   218.173   0.9   -0.7   -0.5Commodities less food ....................................   140.190   138.314   137.462   -0.3   -1.9   -0.6Nondurables ....................................................   214.695   213.329   211.415   0.1   -1.5   -0.9Nondurables less food.....................................   181.667   179.029   177.323   -0.2   -2.4   -1.0Services less rent of shelter (2) ........................   320.088   321.475   320.856   2.2   0.2   -0.2Services less medical care services................   296.875   297.471   297.997   3.0   0.4   0.2Energy .............................................................   243.522   234.598   233.640   -3.0   -4.1   -0.4

Note: See footnotes at end of table.

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Footnotes(1) This index series was calculated using a Laspeyres estimator. All other item stratum index series were calculated using a geometric means estimator.(2) Index is on a December 1982=100 base.(3) Special index based on a substantially smaller sample.(4) Indexes on a December 1993=100 base.(5) Indexes on a December 1997=100 base.- Data not availableNOTE: Index applies to a month as a whole, not to any specific date.

Table 1. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U): Indexes and percent changes for selected periods Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA (1982-84=100 unless otherwise noted) - Continued

Item and Group

 

Indexes  Percent change from-

Oct.2015

Nov.2015

Dec.2015

Dec.2014

Oct.2015

Nov.2015

All items less energy .......................................   247.878   248.417   248.104   2.4   0.1   -0.1All items less food and energy .....................   247.539   248.120   248.140   2.8   0.2   0.0